This question was inspired by comments in the Nuun thread about artificial sweeteners and the fact that some things on the market and in the food stores are just poison… I’ve cleaned up my diet and gone organic to the extent possible. In addition I’ve gotten rid of junk like sodas and artificial sweeteners and so on but am looking for training session food. (Apart from the trusty bike PB&J) I know Cliff products are good. Does anyone know of any other good products out there for long training sessions/runs?
I did a search here and didn’t come up with anything…if this is a repeat question, sorry!
What are you training for? I ask only b/c I think it would be really hard to train for an IM without using incorporating some of the foods/drinks you would get on course.
Oh, for an IM I would (and did) use and train with the course offerings. I’m now training for fun and just staying healthy, doing local races and just renewing my love for triathlon (got simultaneously injured and burned out for awhile). Since I’m not looking for a pr or training for any specific A race, the quality of the food I’m putting in my body can move up a rung on the priority ladder. I’m sure serious IM training will happen again, just not now.
Have you looked at the honey stinger gels? I think they sell them at WF, ATC, and probably everywhere else. Also, Lara Bars - but those are really fibery b/c they are full of nuts and dates.
I think WF also has a drink called ‘Recharge’ or something that is like the equivalent of Gatorade (except in price, I’m sure). But honestly, I am not sure it’s worth worrying about for training. Your training ‘diet’ probably makes up very little of your normal daily diet and therefore would have very little impact overall. I think the nature of what training entails really requires that you take in a certain amount of sugar, and the easiest, most digestable forms of that are going to be in ‘processed’ foods like Gatorade or Gu.
No, you’re right - it’s probably not that big of a deal, I’m just not good at doing anything halfway… so if I’m making the effort in the rest of my food I might as well see to what extent I can incorporate that into my training diet as well. Just if there’s a good option out there I don’t want to miss it for lack of effort (laziness on my part).
Thanks for the reminder about honey stingers - I forgot about those. Also Lara bars… Thanks!
You should check out the Nature’s Path line. They make killer oatmeal and cereal. All of the their products are organic and never use high fructose corn syrup. I am completely addicted to their organic toaster pastries----can you say organic pop tarts??? They are amazing and they just came out with some new flavors. The ones without frosting are even vegan friendly (pretty sure about that not positive).
Sharkies - organic gummy bears. Sport beans bounce out of the packet when I ride, but these stick together enough to make them bike eatable. Clif Bloks taste too much like whale blubber. http://www.sharkiesinc.com/index2.cfm
How do Lara bars hold up in the heat. For example on a hot day with one in your pocket for 4-5 hours on a bike ride will it be moosh when you take it out like Clif bars or liquid like Powerbars? Thx
Hammer Nutrition aims to make as healthy and natural/organic products as possible. This is why I switched to them a couple of years ago. Hammer Bars are made by the same folks who make the Organic Greens bars (or it sure as hell seems that way when you compare labels) and I have had good success with them. Check out Hammernutrition.com and read their treatise. I think you will find it interesting.
Great products, an extensive list of articles and suggestions for how to best use their products. I trained for IMW last year using Hammer. Instead of carrying lots of bottles on my bike I made a concentrated batch of Hammer as my fuel for the entire ride (yes it was thick, but it worked) and I refilled my Profile Aero bottle at each station for my water.
Saved a lot of “bottle weight”. Couldn’t have gotten all this great fuel without Hammer and my stomach loved it all. Not a drop of simple sugar all race!
They work out to about the same price as store bought, but you control what the base ingredient is. I like a combo yogurt and apple sauce. Sweet and moist.
Z-bars by Cliff are really great. They are supposed to be snacks for kids, but they work great for me as a pre-workout snack and they are only 100 or 120 calories which is enough to get me through my workout. but not too many calories like most sports bars.
Not a sales pitch but a FYI. We are 100% all natural with no artificial sweeteners or coloring. It is not no-GMO certified, but we are looking to possibly make that an option down the line. I have it sourced, just figuring out the logistics.
As a FYI, many of the European products are GMO free. Our partner in Europe is making his product GMO free. I think that Enervit is GMO free. I really do not get much call for no-GMO’s/ Seems that Americans do not have issues with modified corn related products.
I really do not get much call for no-GMO’s/ Seems that Americans do not have issues with modified corn related products.
Ok, then let me be the first to say that I am not a big fan of modified anything! I am sure that price is the main concern since most athletes mention that your product seems expensive, but if there’s a way to use non-GMO ingredients, I would support that 100%.
I don’t think most Americans realize that the US uses so many GMO-ingredients while many other countries prohibit this…
I really do not get much call for no-GMO’s/ Seems that Americans do not have issues with modified corn related products.
Ok, then let me be the first to say that I am not a big fan of modified anything! I am sure that price is the main concern since most athletes mention that your product seems expensive, but if there’s a way to use non-GMO ingredients, I would support that 100%.
We will see what we can do. Thanks for the feedback. I know that there is demand. We are also thinking about providing the option for customers to recieve their re-fills in bags so we do not waste plastic/global warming yadda yadda yadda. More eco friendly is where we are trying to head. Give a discount to cut down on consumption.
As for the cost issue, I have heard that pop up lately. Yes, we are a premium product dedicated to the highest quality. But I think that when you factor the elimination of gels bars and salt pills we are actually less costly than other products. But again, I certainly undersand your POV.